Hammad Azhar Sent to Jail on Judicial Remand as Lahore Court Rejects Police Plea in Jinnah House Case

Photo: Geo News

A Lahore anti-terrorism court has sent PTI leader Hammad Azhar to jail on judicial remand in the Jinnah House attack case, turning down a police request to keep him in their custody for longer. The order ends 50 days of physical remand and moves Azhar to Kot Lakhpat jail, where any lie detector test police want can only go ahead with his consent.

Hammad Azhar Judicial Remand: What the Court Decided

Anti-terrorism court judge Sardar Muhammad Akram Khan gave the order on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, after Azhar was brought before him at the end of his latest 12-day physical remand, Dawn reported. The investigating officer had asked for more time in police custody so a polygraph test, also called a lie detector test, could be carried out.

Azhar's lawyer, Barrister Abuzar Salman Niazi, argued that such a test needs the suspect's consent. Citing a Lahore High Court ruling, he told the court the test is done during judicial remand, and the suspect must first tell a magistrate whether he agrees to it or not.

Azhar spoke in court himself. He said that if the law let him refuse the test, he would not take it, and that a suspect should not have to pay for gaps in the prosecution's own knowledge of the rules.

After hearing both sides, Judge Akram rejected the police request and sent Azhar to jail under judicial custody. Geo News reported the judicial remand is for 14 days. Barrister Niazi wrote on X that his client's "50-day physical remand finally ends" and that Azhar had been sent to Kot Lakhpat jail.

Main News Report: The 50 Days in Police Custody

The case comes from the 9 May 2023 protests that followed the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan. Sarwar Road police booked several PTI leaders and workers over charges of attacking and damaging Jinnah House, the Lahore corps commander's residence, during those protests.

Azhar's family says he was picked up on 5 September 2026. Police said the next day that they had no knowledge of any arrest, but he was produced before an anti-terrorism court on 7 September. His first physical remand ran for 21 days and was extended at least twice after that, with the latest 12-day extension granted on 15 October.

Police sources have said Azhar, who was declared a proclaimed offender, was handed over to Lahore police after his arrest in Multan and faces multiple cases linked to the May 9 riots. Azhar has disputed the claims against him and has previously told a court he was in Bhakkar on the day of the incident.

Here is how the custody timeline unfolded:

• 5 September 2026: Azhar's family says he was arrested.
• 7 September 2026: He is produced before an anti-terrorism court in Lahore.
• September to October 2026: A 21-day physical remand is extended at least twice.
• 15 October 2026: The court grants a further 12 days of physical remand.
• 27 October 2026: The court refuses more police custody and orders 14 days of judicial remand.

Background Context: Who Hammad Azhar Is

Azhar is a former federal minister who held the finance, industries and energy portfolios during the PTI government at the centre. He also led the party's Punjab chapter until August 2024, when he stepped down, citing a lack of access to Imran Khan and curbs on his own movement.

He had stayed out of public sight after being named in several cases from the May 9 riots, in which PTI supporters stormed public property and military sites, including the corps commander house in Lahore, after Imran Khan was taken into custody from the Islamabad High Court in a graft case.

The Jinnah House case is one of the most closely watched May 9 trials because it deals with an attack on a military residence, and its hearings are followed closely by both the PTI and the government.

Reactions and Statements

Barrister Niazi welcomed the order in a post on X, writing that the 50-day physical remand had finally ended. His point in court was simple: a lie detector test cannot be forced on a suspect, and the law puts that choice in front of a magistrate, not the police.

Azhar's own words in court were blunt. He said he should not be made to pay for ignorance on the part of the prosecution, and that if the law gave him a choice, he would not go for the test.

Police have not yet said in public whether they will press for the polygraph test before a magistrate now that Azhar is in judicial custody.

Why This News Matters: What Changes Now

The shift from police custody to judicial custody changes who holds Azhar and what police can ask of him. In police custody, officers could question him directly day to day. In jail, he is out of their daily reach, and any polygraph test needs his clear yes before a magistrate.

For PTI supporters, the order is a small win after weeks of watching a senior leader stay in police hands. For the prosecution, it narrows the next step: either make the case for the test before a magistrate, or move ahead with the trial evidence they already have.

It also matters for the wider May 9 cases. Other PTI leaders face similar custody fights, and this ruling shows courts will test police requests for more time rather than grant them as a matter of course.

Related coverage on PakInsight Hub: the Lahore High Court order on Imran Khan's sisters, who are also held at Kot Lakhpat jail; the Peshawar High Court notice on PTI petitions against KP governor's rule; Nawaz Sharif's backing for the KP emergency; and the Supreme Court show-cause notices over a prisoner release in KP.

Future Developments

The next hearing will show whether police seek the polygraph test before a magistrate and whether Azhar agrees to it. If he refuses, the prosecution will have to build its case without that test.

Azhar's 14-day judicial remand will also come up for review, and the court will decide whether he stays in jail or gets bail as the Jinnah House trial moves ahead. Any fresh police request for custody will now face the same test the court applied on Tuesday: a clear legal reason, not just more time.

Sources

Dawn: Lahore ATC denies police further remand of PTI's Hammad Azhar, sends him on judicial remand; Geo News: May 9 riots: PTI leader Hammad Azhar sent to prison on judicial remand; Dunya News: ATC sends PTI leader Hammad Azhar to jail on judicial remand.

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